Ride 'Em Cowboy!

Is rodeo a cultural exercise dedicated to preserving the skills of the Wild West or is it another sport in which animals are exploited for human greed? Apparently the rock band Matchbox Twenty thinks the later since it canceled its scheduled appearance at the granddaddy of all rodeos, the 10-day Cheyenne Frontier Days celebration, which kicked off last weekend.

Events like calf roping, bull riding and bronco busting are all targeted as cruel and violent by activists like Steve Hindi, president of SHARK, or Showing Animals Respect and Kindness, who notes: "These animals are suffering and dying in the name of family entertainment, in the name of Americana."

It is interesting, of course, that this latest culture clash comes at the same time that Congress has decided to investigate horse racing in the wake of Eight Belle's tragic demise at the Kentucky Derby.

I don't profess to be in the least bit knowledgeable about rodeo (I did attend one last fall at our local horse show stomping grounds and actually found the animals to be very well treated but that was what they wanted me to see), but I do think that cowboy culture is unique and usually extremely respectful of the animals who to a certain extent provide their livelihood. Busting broncos and roping steers all come with the territory and while rodeo puts these skills on display, the protesters say nothing about doing away with the practices in the "wild" so to speak.

As I understand it, rodeos were a chance for cowboys to show off their skills and compete against each other. They have, of course, evolved to become "professional" events and that is no doubt where the problems begin. Just like every other sport that involves money and competition, there are those who play by the rules and those who don't.

It is interesting that there is a Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association that promotes and sanctions official rodeos and which maintains standards for the treatment of rodeo animals. It may not be the greatest life to be a horse or bull on the rodeo circuit, but especially in the case of the bull, it beats the alternative. It just seems to me that a cowboy is nothing without his horse so it behooves him to treat his animal well.

You're never going to stop cowboys from roping calves. If you want to stop them from making money from it, that's one thing, but then target the actual concept of professional rodeo, not the traditions and techniques that "tamed the West."